Nightshade Foods - A Trigger For Chronic Pain

Cort

Founder of Health Rising and Phoenix Rising
Staff member
This is real stuff! If you're in pain you might consider cutting out foods from the nightshade family (potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, peppers).
A year and a half ago my knee started going crazy! I had hurt it several years before and all of a sudden it was aching like mad. The only thing I'd changed was my diet. I was trying to keep up with the tomatoes from my garden. I cut them out and the pain in my knee disappeared...

It did not affect my ME/CFS or my fibro pain but that ache was gone. My fathers wife with arthritis had a similar experience.
I have seen a number of new cases lately of people with acute arthritic symptoms in their hands, knees, backs and other areas of their body. When I ask them if they have been eating more tomatoes, eggplants and/or capsicums, the answer is often “Yes”.
This time of year these foods are in abundance in backyards all around the country and we have a large variety of them to choose from in the shops. Potatoes are also a regular part of many people’s diet but unfortunately these can also cause problems, especially if they have green patches or have started to sprout.

A problem for many people is that their body cannot metabolize (break down) a particular substance called solanine, which is a glycoalkaloid found within certain foods. The solanine then builds up in the major organs, including the thyroid gland and skeletal muscles and can causes all sorts of problems. This can result in an inflammatory response and different people have various levels of sensitivity, depending on genetics, your nutritional status or other factors.

Foods from the Nightshade family of plants (Solanaceae) all contain the chemical solanine, which is a naturally-occurring toxin found in a number of different plants. For example, Tomatoes contain tomatine; eggplants contain alpha-solanine; capsicums and chillies contain solanadine and potatoes (not sweet potatoes) possess solanine. Solanine chemicals can also be found in Goji berries, cayenne pepper, paprika and the herb ashwagandha. Other things to watch for are potato starch, which is used in many food products including thickening agents; homoeopathic medicines that contain belladonna and natural ointments for pain and inflammation that contain capsicum (cayenne). Pharmaceutical medications that contain potato starch as a filler (such as certain sleeping pills, muscle relaxants) may also contain solanine. Atropine and Scopolamine, commonly used in sleeping pills contain solanine. In addition, artichokes, okra and blueberries have some.
 

Who Me?

Well-Known Member
Don't those foods have something to do with histamine? Something nagging in the back of my brain.
 

Mary Anne

Member
This is real stuff! If you're in pain you might consider cutting out foods from the nightshade family (potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, peppers).
A year and a half ago my knee started going crazy! I had hurt it several years before and all of a sudden it was aching like mad. The only thing I'd changed was my diet. I was trying to keep up with the tomatoes from my garden. I cut them out and the pain in my knee disappeared...

It did not affect my ME/CFS or my fibro pain but that ache was gone. My fathers wife with arthritis had a similar experience.
I'm wondering if this could be the cause of my recent tummy pain. I've been taking a probiotic for several months and having good results by opening the capsule and pouring the contents on a small amount of yogurt, but a few days ago I decided to swallow the capsule whole. I just read the ingredients and the capsule contains potato starch. I am allergic to potatoes and always have a bad reaction to them. I'll have to go back to pouring the probiotic out of the capsule again and see if it clears up.
 

Cort

Founder of Health Rising and Phoenix Rising
Staff member
I don't know about histamine or not but I can tell you this is real. My father's wife went off tomatoes and nightshades and her arthritis improved significantly. She told her doctor who pooh-poohed the whole thing of course. For me it doesn't affect my ME/CFS or FM - it affects my knee problem - something else entirely.
 

Who Me?

Well-Known Member
I'm gonna stop tomatoes and raisins for a few days and see if it makes a difference.

I just heard about someone called Daosin that stops the histamine before eating.
 

Cort

Founder of Health Rising and Phoenix Rising
Staff member
I'm gonna stop tomatoes and raisins for a few days and see if it makes a difference.

I just heard about someone called Daosin that stops the histamine before eating.
If you're eating potatoes and eggplant and peppers - those are in the family as well.
 

Folk

Well-Known Member
I remember that as the first "Diet tip" I've ever read for fibro.
And now I see that's also the most recorrent...
Buut that never made any difference for me, I wonder why. But also, adding a lot of curcumin and other anti-inflamatory foods never did any bennefit too so it goes both ways :\ :/ :|
 

Who Me?

Well-Known Member
Some people with histamine intolerance do benefit from that diet.

I don't think it's an issue for me.

Nothing I've ever done dietwise had made any difference.
 
This is real stuff! If you're in pain you might consider cutting out foods from the nightshade family (potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, peppers).
A year and a half ago my knee started going crazy! I had hurt it several years before and all of a sudden it was aching like mad. The only thing I'd changed was my diet. I was trying to keep up with the tomatoes from my garden. I cut them out and the pain in my knee disappeared...

It did not affect my ME/CFS or my fibro pain but that ache was gone. My fathers wife with arthritis had a similar experience.
I was so shocked the first time I read this. It just couldn't be true ! These are my fav veggies ! But it Meeks sense after I thought about it. Oh well ,,guess I Will just have to suffer thru this too !! That's ok , we all have our little pleasures we have to indulge sometime !
 

Cort

Founder of Health Rising and Phoenix Rising
Staff member
I was so shocked the first time I read this. It just couldn't be true ! These are my fav veggies ! But it Meeks sense after I thought about it. Oh well ,,guess I Will just have to suffer thru this too !! That's ok , we all have our little pleasures we have to indulge sometime !
Just see how it goes....If you feel better you'll hardly miss them - and you may be able to introduce them back a bit at a time.
 

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